Well, here's the next chapter, and i have some good and some bad news...relating to the story. I'll start with the bad. (which can be good if you think about it...) The bad news is that I didn't get to the point i wanted to in this story, my mind sorta went crazy and got all these crazy ideas to add to the story...so this story might be longer than i originally said. (Again possibly its good news) And the good news, is that, I've got some kick butt ideas for future chapters! I'm real excited to get to writing them! Well, enjoy the LONG chapter!

Disclaimer: Same as last time. IMAA is NOT mine, nor will it ever be. If i did, i wouldn't be here.

It wasn't the most fastest way to find Tony, but it was only way that they could be certain that they would find him. The whole process was exhausting and if they didn't have Howard with them, they'd probably take weeks just getting to the searching part. Howard was quick to get the signal search ready and going. Now all they had to do was wait and see if the phone was even charged or on.

"What if he's hurt?" Pepper asked as she paced.

Rhodey who was sitting next to Howard on the couch they had placed in the armory not too long ago, sighed. "Pepper, he'll be fine. It's Tony."

"Yeah, I'm just worried." She responded. "He left his backpack behind."

"He always does that now that he has Extremis." Rhodey said to assure his friend.

"Then why hasn't he called it to help?"

"Maybe he's still passed out." Howard suggested.

Pepper stopped in her tracks. "Then he's hurt? They knocked him out so hard that he hasn't even woken up since last night!? It's been almost a whole day since then! What if- what if they killed him!?"

Rhodey stood up and placed his hands on her shoulder. "Pepper, I know you're worried, but trust me. Tony will be fine. If anyone can escape easily from a villain it's Tony. And I'm sure he has a plan for his armor."

"Rhodey's right." Howard said standing next to the others. "Tony is a genius, a hero, and most of all, he's my son. He will be fine."

Pepper looked down. "I guess...I just wish that search will hurry it up."

As if on cue, there was a ding, and they looked to the screen. Pepper almost smiled. Almost being a key word.

"It found something!" Howard said wondering over to the screen.

Pepper on the other hand stood where she was. She was still thinking about her fight with Tony. She felt horrible for what she did. Sure, he deserved it and she wouldn't take back what she said. He deserved that much, but she still felt horrible because she knew what it felt like to be left behind and alone. Of course she did. It was how she felt all those years in middle school before she met Rhodey and most definitely before she met Tony. That was when her old friends abandon her because she didn't want to go to some stupid party that had alcohol. She remembered them telling her that she was a wuss because it was their last day as a middle school. That was a long story...

Either way, she figured that the two of them leaving him behind, he must have felt pretty awful. He must have felt alone. She looked away from Rhodey's worried eyes. To see something on the floor. It wasn't really anything she wasn't used to seeing, it was blueprint paper. She picked it up. It was a very ripped up piece of blueprint paper, but still. She saw a few others and she started to recognize the writing on them. It was the new invention Tony was working on.

If she didn't feel bad before, imagine how she felt now. It just doubled – no – tripled. She realized not only was this the same thing he was working on last night, but the months before that and it was the same project that he'd been working on since the latest upgrade to the iron man armor, which was a while back, and he was so excited to finish it and get a prototype that would work this time. He was so excited to show it to his dad.

Now, because they had left him, they had caused him to give up on the project and totally destroy it. He ripped it to pieces so it cannot even be fixed. And she even noticed the garbage can with ashes in it. Not only had he ripped it to pieces, he tried to burn every piece of it.

"Pepper you okay? What's that?" Rhodey asked.

"The blueprints for the project he's been working on..." She said.

"Oh..."

"You guys!" Howard's voice called. "Something wrong? I'm uploading the directions to this place."

They both looked over. "No everything's alright." Pepper said dropping the paper.

Howard eyed the falling paper he recognized enough to see that it was blueprints. "Am I missing something?"

"No just an argument we had with Tony last night." Rhodey said.

"It was bit more than an argument..." Pepper muttered under her breath, but Howard heard all the same.

"Did something happen?"

"Story for another time." Rhodey explained.

"How about on the way to this place?" Howard asked holding up his phone that had the directions on it.

The teens nodded and followed the genius out the door.

I'm sorry Tony. Pepper thought. I didn't mean to go this far.

…

Ghost never mentioned his lack of blindfold. He never tried to put it back on or yell at Tony for not listening. He didn't do anything really. HE just walked off out of the room leaving behind the three Maggia men.

He was really glad that there was that portable heater, because he was going crazy in that cold. Plus, he could feel his voice coming back. He could talk as soon as he adjusts to this new heat. Which should be soon enough saying that the heater seemed to be set on high. Though he was starting to think that there was a different reason for that heater being there.

He sighed. It was all part of Ghost's tricks. He may have known him for more of a straight forward type of guy, but it seemed that he was more than that. He loved his games. Since he seemed to be doing the whole good cop bad cop thing, only alone. At one moment you'd trust him to not hurt you and do things the easy way. Or easier. Then as soon as you think you have it good, he snaps and cuts any string of hope or trust that you would get out of there unharmed. So maybe the heater, was on way to trick his mind to thinking that all he needs to do is cooperate and then there would be no problem. Then the heater would be taken away and basically he would do anything to get the heater back.

That was all just a theory in Tony's head, but even so. It was a method he's seen in all those movies he watched with Rhodey and Pepper.

Just the thought of the two made his heart ache. If only they knew he was here. If only they knew a way to get him out of this. The only thing keeping him from escaping himself, was the cold, and a non-clear head. Which both issues seemed to be clearing up quicker than he thought. Though, he would have at least expected for his mind to clear up by now, but apparently what ever they did, which he was now pretty sure it was the work of chloroform, must have been pretty darn strong to keep him so out of it for so long.

After a while of doing nothing, he'd actually fallen asleep, not necessarily the best thing to do, when he expected to see Ghost at least sometime before the sun set. After all he probably had more business to attend to then his captive superhero. It's okay, he could just sit there for ever and starve! Maybe Ghost wanted him to rot in the cold. Maybe that was Ghost's true reason to trapping him there.

Not only was it cold, he was deprived of food and water. Though, he was smart enough not to bring up the topic of food and water to the Maggia men watching over him. Part of his mind knew that it was a bad idea. It would only remind them that there was a number of other ways to go out with this. Namely, torture, but so far, Tony didn't see any of that in his future...He just hoped that it wasn't in his future. Just because he didn't see it, it doesn't mean it won't.

He had woken up a few times, and it had actually gotten dark out. It wasn't all too surprising though. Though, he was getting more crazy by just the silence. At some point he had gotten his voice back, which was a bit sore from not talking for such a long time. Though, nothing he said got any response, so he shut his mouth not wanting to get himself into more trouble. For now, all he thought about was escape measures he could take.

Extremis! He suddenly felt the sudden urge to slap himself, which he's been wanting to that a lot lately since all his dark thoughts couldn't really be ignored when he's pretty much alone. The horrible thoughts that maybe he didn't need his friends. They abandon him, so why should he depend on them for help? They didn't care. They left him alone, which he'd never felt so alone. Even when he thought he'd lost his dad. But again, he wanted to slap himself.

Thinking back to Extremis, he couldn't have felt more stupid. He suspected that he was here for at least a day, (not counting the time he was passed out) and he never thought to use Extremis. Not even once! What was wrong with him? Oh, right, non-clear mind...might have been drugged with Chloroform. That's a good reason.

He concentrated, his mostly clear mind, which was almost crystal clear by the way, and focused all his energy in calling upon his armor with Extremis. Try as he might, nothing happened. He frowned. This shouldn't be having issues. His mind was clear enough, right? Maybe it had something to do with not knowing where he was exactly. Focusing his attention to the closest Maggia guy's phones, and tried to use Extremis on it. Nothing happened. Just like the last time.

He sighed frustrated. Now he felt truly useless. He gets all hopeful that he found a way out, an easy way out, and it just flew out the window. All due to technical difficulties, if he could call it that...

The door across the room opened and in strolled Ghost. His stride all the way to where Tony sat, was as if the man was proud of what he was doing. For all Tony knew, he was.

"Stark, it looks like I've finally opened my schedule for you!" Ghost practically teased. "And guess what, kid! This time, we're actually going to get something done!"

Ghost snapped his fingers and one of the Maggia men handed Ghost a laptop. At the same moment, Ghost opened the laptop on moved close to Tony to show him what ever it was that was on the screen.

"I've been waiting to show you this." Ghost whispered. "Maybe this will help me get my revenge!"

Tony gritted his teeth and winced as what looked like a live video of his friends. They were tied up in ropes against a wall in a building similar to the one he was in. Only it was empty and free of all those machines. Pepper seemed to be tugging at the ropes tied around Rhodey's in attempt to free him, so he could free them. But she wasn't making good progress.

"Now watch closely, Stark."

Tony didn't want to listen. He just focused on the laptop in front of him. Maggia men surrounded the group. That group being Pepper, Rhodey, and his father. At lease Roberta didn't get dragged into all of this. He wanted to look away in fear that they would try to do something to them. If they did, he wasn't about to watch.

"Don't worry." Ghost started pulling the laptop away to the Maggia member next to him. "They won't hurt them. Not unless I give them the signal."

Ghost waved his hand tauntingly in front of Tony's face. He held some kind of trigger of the sort. He guessed that was the signal. If the button on it was pressed...well, he didn't like thinking about it. No matter how mad or upset he was with his friends, he'd never wish for them to get hurt in such a way.

"Now, do what you rich kids always do." Ghost sneered. "Sit pretty for me."

Tony wasn't going to sit pretty. He wasn't about to listen to Ghost, but then again, what choice did he have?

He didn't pay attention to anything Ghost did for a few minutes, escpecially since he went half way across the room. For now, all he could do was wait and see what it was Ghost was planning for his revenge.

…

Pepper jumped back the instant she saw the Maggia coming closer. Unfortunately, he save from hitting her head on the wall, was bumping up against Howard. It was awkward enough that she sometimes felt like she was stealing Tony away from Howard and she feared what his opinion was of her. So far, he didn't seem like he didn't like her...

She scooted away from the rich genius and looked away to the Maggia who were closing in on them. "Stay back!" She shouted.

Rhodey shot her a glare that clearly said, 'SHUT UP!'

She pouted as she realized the Maggia in front of them stopped. What were they looking at? They already got them tied up? She could see bats, crowbars, and guns at the ready, but none of them looked like they were about to fire.

She already realized that this place was a trap. It was pretty obvious when they found the POD phone on a table in the middle of the warehouse. They just had to know if it had clues on it. Of course it didn't, but now they were trapped, unable to help Tony through what ever danger he might be facing. And it still really hurt that the last thing they did was fight. What if he-? NO! He wasn't going to die. She was going to get the chance to say sorry, and get things patched up between them before she would let him die.

"Don't move!" One of the Maggia shouted as Pepper moved to sit closer to Rhodey. "We highly advise you don't move if you want to help Tony Stark!"

So, they did have Tony! "Where is he!? What have you done with him!? Is he hurt? If he is, I swear on your life that I will personally shove you're-"

"Pepper!" Rhodey snapped shocked. "SHHH!"

"What!?" She asked. "I was just saying..."

"Shut it kid!" The same Maggia member hissed. "If you want to get out of her alive, you'd listen."

"Finally!" She said exasperated. "Someone gets it right!?"

"You're crazy, kid." The Maggia member muttered before he continued to ignore them.

Tony, Pepper thought. I knew we'd find you some way or another...

She just wished she knew exactly where it was they were hiding him...

Wow, i just remebered that i was going to add a whole 'nother section to this chapter, with Tony and Ghost, then it would have been a bit more on track...but i guess i got distracted by something and that means, i forgot, too bad too! It would have been an EXTRA long chapter! :( I guess i'm too lazy right now to add it on. But here, since tomorrows Friday, i can continue this. OH and thats the other thing i wanted to talk about. For those of you who are following my other stories, you might notice that i'm only updating this story, and sometimes Baby Phase, (Which should be updated this weekend...) Which if you did, you're right. I'm trying a new stratagies i got from Carpetbakr (I think) and its to focus on one or maybe two stories until their finished. Which, unless i get the strong urge to update one of my other stories, i'm going to be focusing on this story. (Sorry and you''re welcome!)

Okay, so here's another FUN FACT: I have a odd obsession of naming bugs and getting a bit too close to them so when they die, i get really sad...:( I'll even give you some names! All Flies are called: Bob. All Box Elder bugs are called: Billy. Ladybugs: Sally. Bees: Steve. Butterflies: Phil/Philip.

Well, Hope you enjoyed it! :D I really should get going... O.O